Hearing this, Miko nearly burst into tears, stammering,
"Y-Ye... Ye Xing, evil... evil—"
"Hungry? If you're hungry, go eat. Telling me won't help—I'm not a chef."
Before Miko could finish, Ye Xing waved his hand to interrupt, leaning in to whisper,
"Look properly. She's human, not an evil spirit."
Only then did Miko relax slightly, though she still bit her lower lip nervously while staring at the beautiful girl, clearly shaken.
There was no helping it.
In the past, Miko Yotsuya could tell at a glance whether someone was human or an evil spirit just by their appearance.
But ever since that incident where an evil spirit disguised as Shizuka Hiratsuka nearly tricked her, she'd developed a sort of PTSD.
Just hearing the phrase "Can you see me?" was enough to make her soul nearly leave her body.
Fortunately, Ye Xing was by her side—otherwise, she would have blurted out "evil spirit" right then.
"My apologies for disturbing you."
Seeing Ye Xing whisper into Miko's ear in an intimate manner, the beautiful girl tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and spoke softly yet gracefully before turning to leave without hesitation.
Only after the girl had gone did Miko finally let out a sigh of relief.
Then, it struck her—the girl's face looked familiar.
"Wait, wasn't that... Mai Sakurajima-senpai?"
"Don't know her, never met her."
Seeing Ye Xing's indifferent expression, Miko raised her eyebrows in surprise.
"You don't know Mai Sakurajima-senpai? Let me tell you, she's—"
"Former national idol, child star debut, famous actress, lead in multiple morning dramas, right?"
Ye Xing rattled off Mai Sakurajima's long list of titles before yawning.
"I know all about her. Just not interested. Don't forget—right now, stargazing isn't our priority."
At these words, Miko's expression visibly darkened as she nodded solemnly.
"Yeah, I know."
As a psychic with Mystic Eyes, ever since learning from Ye Xing about the hidden dangers in Kyoto—those restless evil spirits threatening all of humanity—Miko had already made up her mind.
Even without considering her own safety, she was determined to work with Ye Xing to resolve this.
"Alright, relax a little."
Noticing Miko's tense expression, Ye Xing chuckled and patted her shoulder.
"I'm in a good mood today. Let me treat you to dinner before we start your training."
"Training? What am I, a Pokémon?"
"If only you were. I'd be force-feeding you Rare Candies."
"Stop saying weird things."
After this playful banter, Miko finally loosened up a bit, though she still fidgeted slightly.
"So... dinner with me? Just... the two of us alone?"
"Of course, just us."
"I... alright."
Miko felt her heartbeat suddenly quicken.
She stole a glance at Ye Xing's profile, thinking to herself how charming he was when he wasn't spouting nonsense.
Could it be...?
But they'd only known each other for five days. Wasn't this moving too fast?
Was she misreading things?
Still, a dinner for two sounded undeniably romantic.
What if Ye Xing suddenly confessed during the meal? How should she respond?
Accept... or reject?
Miko's mind was in turmoil.
...
Half an hour later.
Miko Yotsuya stared blankly at the derelict building before her, its walls a decaying grey, exuding an ominous and eerie aura.
"You... you meant having a meal alone in this sort of place?"
"Of course."
With a completely serious expression, Ye Xing produced two lunch boxes from his bag.
"I sneaked out during lunch break to buy these. You're getting the VIP treatment here."
Miko gazed at the abandoned building, her golden eyes brimming with reluctance as her legs trembled beneath her.
"C-can we not eat here? Y-you said it'd just be the two of us?"
"Exactly. Just the two of us 'humans'. Keeping my word, see?"
Seeing Miko still hesitating, Ye Xing shrugged and strode straight into the building.
"Well, if you don't come in, our partnership ends here."
Hearing this, Miko's adorable face twisted in despair before she finally gritted her teeth, stamped her foot, and forced herself to follow despite her terror.
The moment she stepped inside, she sensed a chillingly familiar presence - the same she'd encountered in that alleyway before.
'So there's a Gate nearby,' she thought grimly.
This realisation weighed heavily on her.
Not without reason.
Last time, she hadn't seen or sensed that Gate's terrifying aura until entering the alley. Its influence had been confined to those few dozen metres of shadowy passage.
But now...
She could clearly perceive the Gate's presence just by stepping inside.
This half-built skyscraper, designed as a shopping mall, stood at least thirty or forty storeys tall.
Which meant...
The Gate here had a sphere of influence over a hundred times greater than the previous one.
"Training begins now."
As Ye Xing spoke, Miko suddenly noticed hundreds of inhuman eyes emerging from the unlit corners - varying in size and colour but all gleaming with madness.
Hundreds of monstrous gazes fixed intently upon them both.
Confronted with this nightmare, Miko felt plunged into an icy abyss, her pupils dilating in shock.
"No elevator. We'll take the stairs."
Ye Xing remained utterly composed, as if completely oblivious to the evil spirits.
Now Miko understood what this "training" entailed.
Trapped here, she had no choice but to suppress her fear and follow Ye Xing up the stairwell.
"Can you see me?"
"Can you see me?"
"Can you see me?"
After entering the dim and narrow stairwell, the evil spirits not only failed to disperse but instead followed them.
From the corner of her eye, Miko Yotsuya would occasionally catch glimpses of strands of pitch-black, dripping hair or pale, grotesquely twisted fingers flashing past her side.
In the silent stairwell, apart from the incessant whispers of the evil spirits, only her and Ye Xing's footsteps could be heard. This, intertwined with the sight of hundreds of evil spirits crowding behind them, created a terrifying scene straight out of a hellish painting.